The Fault of a Tombstone
by doryishness
Summary: Temari tells her Uncle how much she blames him. She blames him for turning Gaara into what he is. She blames him for trying to kill her baby brother. It’s his entire fault, and she lets him know.
1. Chapter 1

**EDIT: The first chapter has be edited and resubmitted all pretty and easier to read now, thanks to Tsuki Yuuki and sasukesfang, my wonderful betas. Thank you guys, so much for helping me! 3**

Since I've become like, obsessed with Naruto, especially the Sand Siblings, I decided to write my own oneshot. (which has now turned into a two-shot, due to popular demand, xD)

I've always hated how Yashamaru betrayed Gaara like that. And I figured that even though Temari and Kankuro acted like they despised Gaara, Temari is smart enough to know why her brother came out so emotionally screwed. It was never Gaara's fault.

Plot: Temari tells her Uncle how much she blames him. She blames him for turning Gaara into what he is. She blames him for being bitter about his sister's death. She blames him for trying to kill her baby brother. It's his entire fault, and she lets him know.

**Disclaimer**: Dude. You kidding? If I owned it, all of those boys (and some of those girls) would be chained to the end of my bed. Only thing I got at the end of my bed right now is my kitty.

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The sand blew across the land as dusk approached. The village's graveyard was more sand than grass, and dead grass at that. Crumbling tombstones were sprinkled throughout the designated area at the edge of Sunagakure. It was a cool evening, and the only sound in the graveyard was the soft howl of the wind racing by.

Temari rarely visited her mother's grave. She had never bothered to attend her father's funeral, and as for her uncle….

That's where she had ended up. Hugging herself, she had stood in front of a slab of stone, worn from the sand brushing against it for the past several years. Temari's eyes were narrowed, her jaw set hard. The stone only had his first name, Yashamaru, his birth and death dates. Since he had failed to carry out the Fourth Kazekage's orders, her angry father had barely cared enough to give Yashamaru a decent burial. There hadn't been a funeral, or even a memorial. They had just buried him and left.

"Even that was too much," Temari said coldly to the stone. "He should have just tossed your body into the desert for the jackals." She knew that she was being disrespectful, venomously wishing her uncle a different burial. She supposed that she was grateful and pleased that he hadn't even been buried next to the beloved sister that he had willingly killed and died for. Served him right.

"This is all your fault you know," Temari spat bitterly. She swallowed, glaring at the tombstone. She could feel hot anger rising inside of her, and the hatred that Gaara must feel all the time.

"It's your fault Gaara is like this. You tricked him…you led him to believe he was a monster. Even more than Father or the rest of the village." At her sides, Temari's hands curled into tight fists.

"You let him believe you loved him. And you never did. It was bad enough the rest of his family shunned him…you….because of Mother…" Temari's voice quivered slightly, and her eyes were squinting, as if holding back tears.

"You blamed a guiltless baby for Mother's death. It was never Gaara's fault; it was because of you that we blamed him. It was Father who killed Mother in the end. He placed that monster in Gaara. Mother blamed Father, so why did you blame Gaara?" Her voice was rising in anger, spitting harsh, venomous words at her deceased uncle.

"He never asked for any of this. All he wanted was to be normal, for people to love him. He thought you loved him…and you didn't. You broke his heart when you were his only hope." Her fists started to shake at her sides as she started to noticeably tremble.

"You lied to him." Temari's voice cracked. "You lied to him about loving him. You lied to him about Mother. She cursed the village…she cursed Father…but she never resented Gaara. She loved him; even though she died, she loved her unborn son." Temari broke into a dry sob, and her legs slowly crumbled under her. She collapsed in front of the tombstone, shoulders sagging, looking defeated.

"It's your fault me and Kankuro were scared of him, that we shunned him. You and Father told us to hate him. I just wanted a baby brother…you gave me a monster in the form of a little innocent child. I wanted to love Gaara, and play with him like a baby brother and sister should play together. I never wanted to fear and hate him. I never…" Temari's voice broke again, and she let out another dry, racking sob. "I never wanted him to hate me. It ripped my heart each time to hear that he didn't care about us, he didn't think of us as his siblings. We're the only family that loves him. I still love him – but you made him hate and resent us. You…"

Temari's fists clenched the sand, and she brought them up to fling it at her uncle's grave. "You took my baby brother away from me! You took my family away!" she screamed, her voice shattering with dry sobs.

There were a few moments of silence as Temari breathed, regaining her composure. Finally she lifted her head and glared hatefully at the stone.

"I hate you." She swallowed and raised her voice again. "I hate you, and I hate Father. I hate myself. I should have known better. I should have…" Temari trailed off, knowing what she should have done was too late to make any difference.

"I hope you're rotting in hell next to Father," she spat. Her fists clenched again, and it took all of her strength to resist smashing the tombstone to dust. She swallowed and then slowly reached out her hand to drag her fingers against the engraved name.

"You should have had the name 'self-loving carnage'," Temari sneered. "Didn't care about anybody else, tried to assassinate a little boy…but not even you are worthy enough for such a horrible name." She clenched her fingers, and drew her nails down the stone, letting her arm fall back to her side.

"Well, I love Gaara. And I'm treating him like I should have all of his life: like my little brother, like a human. I've lost 13 years where I should have been doing that, thanks to you and Father. But I hope you can see how much I love him, how much Kankuro loves him, and how much the VILLAGE loves him. They're accepting him now; he's not a monster.

"And I if I could laugh in your face, I would. He's the Kazekage now. Even what you tried to do failed. Look at where he is now. He's better than Father; he's always been better than you," Temari snapped.

She wrapped her arms around herself again, hugging tightly. Still on her knees, the only sound in the dark cold night was the wind howling across the sand dunes. The dried tear streaks on her face were the only evidence of how upset she had been, her now-stoic face looking directly at the tombstone.

She was faintly aware of the fact, amidst all the regretting and reminiscing about the past she was doing, that she ought to return home soon. Kankuro would be waiting impatiently in the kitchen, demanding to know where she had gone—specifically, with WHOM— what she had done, and that she make him something to eat.

Gaara would be in the doorway as usual, arms crossed over his chest and eyes narrowed, silently reiterating Kankuro's questions. Even though it had been a year since his fight with Naruto, and it was true that he had changed for the best, he was still easily angered and distrusting. If her answer didn't please him, everything in their house was sure to be destroyed. Again. And Temari suspected – no, KNEW – that if she was honest and said Yashamaru's grave, Gaara would go ballistic. Kankuro had mentioned his name once, right before the chunin exams. It had taken everything Baki and Temari had to keep him from murdering his older brother, and that had just been a casual mentioning. Yes, things were different now – but Temari wasn't about to risk it.

With a sigh, she rose to her feet, brushing sand off of her legs and rear. She scowled down at the gravestone. "See you in hell, Uncle," she spat as a goodbye. She turned on her heel and strode away, making her way back home.

Unknown to her, an eye made of sand hovered for a few more seconds behind a nearby gravestone before disintegrating and returning to a redheaded boy leaning against a towering tombstone of the first Kazekage some distance away. His hand dropped away from his face and folded against his chest as he narrowed his eyes, looking to the side as he watched Temari disappear back into the lights at the edge of the village.

Uncrossing his ankles, he shoved himself off the tree trunk with a foot and disappeared in a whirlwind of sand.

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Okay, so yah….I totally winged it on the ending. I got to the end of Temari's ranting, and didn't know where to go from there.

So please review, leave comments how much you liked it, what could have been done better (but please be polite, I don't respond well to meanies.) (I'm not sure if this is horribly OCC or not) and take a handful of gummie bears on your way out.


	2. Chapter 2

If you didn't know, the first chapter has been slightly edited, so if you would like to re-read, that would be nice. It will refresh your memory for our second part too!

NOW, comes chapter two, his reaction!

I would like to thank my betas: **Tsuki Yuuki and sasukesfang **for editing and cleaning up my mistakes, as well as helping me improve. Much love you guys.

**Dedication**: Okay, yah, this is lame, but I wanted to say this chapter is for all of you, who have encouraged me with such kind words.

**Disclaimer**: _I don't own Naruto or any of it's characters, setting, yatta yatta yatta._

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Gaara arrived home a few moments before Temari, appearing in a whirl of sand in the back of their living room. He tried to escape to his room, but his older brother instantly caught him. 

"Oi, where have you been? Find Temari?" Kankuro twisted and peered over the top of the couch in front of Gaara, his hair mussed up from his cat-eared hat. Gaara didn't answer, but hesitated where he stood.

"Hello? Earth to Gaara?" Kankuro clambered over the back of the couch and waved his hand in front of his brother's face. "I asked if you found Temari."

Gaara scowled in annoyance and batted Kankuro's hand away.

"No," he answered flatly, moving to retreat to his room. Kankuro opened his mouth to protest, but the back door slamming open cut him off.

"I'm home!" Temari's voice rang out from the kitchen. Inside, she dropped her fan into a corner, moving towards the sink.

"Where have you been!?" Kankuro yelled in indignation, barreling into the kitchen from the living room.

"None of your business," Temari snapped, turning around to face him with her hands on her hips. That seemed to be enough of an answer for Kankuro, rude as it was.

"I want something to eat," Kankuro demanded, easily turning to another subject without anymore thought on the previous one. Back in the living room, Gaara lingered, listening to his siblings argue loudly.

"You pig! I gave you a snack…" Temari consulted the stove clock. "Barely two hours ago!"

"Yah, but I'm hungry **now**," Kankuro snarked back. He crossed his arm in a defiant protest, eyeing his sister grumpily.

"Fine! Fine, I'll make you something to eat. Now leave me alone!" Temari snapped again, throwing her hands up in defeat. Kankuro broke into a triumphant grin, and practically skipped back to the living room. With a growl, Temari turned to the stove, pulling out the kettle and filling it up with water to boil for tea.

Gaara had slipped into the hallway, eyeing his sister in the dark from the other doorway that led into the kitchen. Arms folded and face stoic, he tried to process the thoughts running in his mind.

Why had Temari gone to Yashamaru's grave in the first place? Why had she started yelling at an inanimate slab of stone? And most importantly – the question that confused Gaara the most – did she really believe and think all that?

Did she really not blame him? Everyone had blamed him before, and he had been so positive that Temari and Kankuro had hated him, had blamed him, too, for the loss of their mother. How could she blame herself, for the way she had acted, for how everyone had treated him years ago? That was what bewildered him the most.

She "should have known better"? …How could she have known? He had never told his siblings what happened that fateful night, he'd never told them why everything changed, why he'd changed. And she hadn't even know about Shukaku for the first five years after he was born. She hadn't understood that Gaara was host to a demon, was only to be a tool for their village. She hadn't known until she had matured into an older and smarter girl.

And how could she blame herself anyways? She had tried to be a sister, even through all she had been taught about how to treat the young boy. As she had grown older, even though she had feared him, she had tried to take care of him, as much as he would allow. Which hadn't been much, but she had tried. She had attempted to make sure he ate on missions; that he had a clean change of clothes when they were gone for longer then a few days…He could remember that she would express worry when he would stalk away from their camp on missions, weakly calling after him not to go far. Of course, back then, he had responded with hostility, threatening to kill her if she bothered him again, or coldly ignored her.

Gaara felt a foreign twinge of guilt somewhere inside of him. She shouldn't think that, she shouldn't blame herself. She shouldn't believe it was her fault – she was a victim just as he was. He vaguely wondered how long she had thought all this, had blamed herself and hated Yashamaru. He hadn't even known that Temari felt that strongly against their uncle. He had always assumed they never even cared, stemming from the indifference they had expressed when Gaara had killed the man.

If he thought about it, the only emotion Temari had ever showed him was fear. Not even resentment. Not if he thought about it. Back then, a few years ago, yes, he would have said all he saw was hate in her eyes. But if he thought back…it had been only fear, and a little bit of sadness.

Gaara didn't want her to feel this way. She shouldn't, anyways. There were a lot of things that people were feeling, and shouldn't have been feeling. Swallowing, he moved forward to tell her.

Temari hummed, unaware of Gaara's watchful position in the hall. She had expertly made a hefty sandwich for her other sibling, stacked thick with meat, tomato, lettuce, cheese, pickles and every other condiment that was known to go on sandwiches.

She delivered it to Kankuro, who thanked her with a grunt, eyes glued to the TV. Temari rolled her eyes, use to the little audible appreciation she received from him.

"I'll have tea in a few minutes," she promised. Kankuro merely grunted in response again, taking a disgustingly large bite of his sandwich and chewing away, cheeks bulging.

She returned to the kitchen, perfectly timing it with the kettle's shrill whistle. Snapping off the stove and pouring the water from the kettle into china teapot, she prepared the hot drink in a cup for Kankuro. She was still unaware of Gaara's presence until he spoke up.

"At least don't blame yourself." Gaara's cold monotone voice came from behind her.

Temari gasped, the teakettle slipping from her hands and crashing to the floor, smashing into a thousand pieces of china. Temari whirled around, staring at her youngest brother, wide-eyed and fearful.

"W-w-what?" she stammered, hoping that what she thought he thought wasn't what he was really thinking.

"It's not your fault," Gaara repeated, arms folded across his chest. He stood in the doorway, on the edge of the shadows from the hallway with his eyes hard and narrowed.

Temari's heart leapt into her heart and froze. "Gaara, I…"

"I mean it. It wasn't your fault."

Temari stared at him, hands behind her gripping the counter edge. _Oh god…_she thought. _How does he know?_ Had he been there, in the graveyard, earlier that evening when she was there, ranting to a silent tombstone? He obviously had to have been, the way he had zeroed in on something that she had told no one.

Temari couldn't help the terrified look in her eyes, and paling to her cheeks. Was he mad? What was he thinking? Why was he saying it wasn't her fault? Why didn't he blame her, when she blamed herself?

"Gaara, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to–" Temari started quickly in a frantic voice, but Gaara held up a hand, stopping her. The two siblings locked eyes, light green and dark teal, both searching to uncover what the other was feeling and thinking underneath.

Temari's breath was caught in her throat, as Gaara calmly spoke one last time.

"Don't blame yourself for any of it." He then turned, and bled back into the shadows, and Temari could as hear soft footsteps slinked up the stairs.

Temari stayed frozen where she was, cooling water and shards of china littering the floor. She finally let herself exhale heavily, heart thumping wildly. Oh god…what was he thinking? Had she offended him? Temari felt so bad, so guilty, even if Gaara said that the past events hadn't been her fault.

With another gasp, Temari pushed herself away from the counter, bolting for the stairs.

Gaara had retreated not to his room, but his customary perch up on the roof. The roof of the Kazekage's house was slightly slanted, with large stone statues embellishing the corners.

He was perched on the edge of the roof, next to a large statue of a flipping fish, staring at the moon, stars and dunes, arms looped around his knees, which were drawn up to his chest, and head tilted back. He looked rather innocent and serene as he studied the dark sky.

Temari timidly ventured up onto the roof, looking around once before spying Gaara at the furthest corner. With a deep breath, Temari clenched her fists and quietly strode to where her youngest brother sat.

She paused, but before Gaara could turn around to acknowledge her presence, Temari dropped to her knees behind him and threw her arms around his shoulders and chest. She hugged him tightly, closing her eyes and pressing her cheek against the back of his head, feeling the soft, red hair there.

Gaara froze, eyes opening wide as he tensed. A bewilderedlook passed over his face as he waited for her next move.

"I'll never lie to you Gaara. I promise," Temari whispered against Gaara's neck.

She pulled his smaller frame against her own, squeezing tightly. She would never lie to him like Yashamaru had. She wouldn't ever mislead him. She would make sure he knew that she loved him with all of her heart, her little brother.

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So, read and review. Polite Constructive criticism is loved:D 

And so ends my twoshot!

I hope you will all read my later stories, I'm working on a multiple chapter sand-sib story as well as a few others that involve our favorite trio of siblings xD

Thank you guys sooo much for all the support, it really touches me.


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